A teenager looking for a family, a bunch of people looking for a job, a rich guy looking for love. What do they have in common?

It's the fact that TV audiences didn't much care to tune into their travails on television. Those three shows -- "Life Unexpected," "The Apprentice" and "Running Wilde" -- are among the least-watched shows on their respective networks this season.

Zap2it's fourth annual survey of the bottom of the Nielsens brings a couple of points into relief: First, several new shows failed spectacularly in the ratings (see: "School Pride," "Lone Star," "The Whole Truth" et al). Second, CBS has been pretty well immune to ratings malaise. Its overall viewership is up compared to this time last season, and "low-rated" is a relative term there. Three of the five lowest-rated series on the network are in the top 40 overall in viewers.

As usual, in putting together this list we considered only shows on the five English-language networks that aired in their normal timeslots (fill-in repeats and off-timeslot airings were discarded). The four least-watched series (through Dec. 19; figures courtesy of Nielsen) on each network follow, ranked from smallest number of viewers to largest.

Viewers: 1.7 millionRank: 98th of 98 shows in fall 2010Fun fact: If it's any consolation -- not likely... Show More »

Viewers: 1.7 millionRank: 98th of 98 shows in fall 2010Fun fact: If it's any consolation -- not likely, but here it is anyway -- the least-watched series on TV this fall draws a little bigger audience than last year's bottom show, "The Beautiful Life" (1.39 million). « Less

Viewers: 2.05 millionRank: 97thFun fact: Despite being next-to-last in our rankings, the show's audience has actually grown a tiny bit; it's up from 1.99 million viewers this time last year. « Less

4/20

'Gossip Girl' (The CW):

Viewers: 2.15 millionRank: 96thFun fact: Unlike "OTH," "Gossip Girl" has dipped a little this season; this time... Show More »

Viewers: 2.15 millionRank: 96thFun fact: Unlike "OTH," "Gossip Girl" has dipped a little this season; this time last year it was averaging 2.6 million viewers. « Less

5/20

'90210' (The CW):

Viewers: 2.18 millionRank: 95thFun fact: In its third season, the original "Beverly Hills, 90210" ranked 42nd in the ... Show More »

Viewers: 2.18 millionRank: 95thFun fact: In its third season, the original "Beverly Hills, 90210" ranked 42nd in the Nielsens. « Less

6/20

'School Pride' (NBC):

Viewers: 2.56 millionRank: 93rdFun fact: "School Pride" is the lowest-rated show on NBC's fall schedule sinc... Show More »

Viewers: 2.56 millionRank: 93rdFun fact: "School Pride" is the lowest-rated show on NBC's fall schedule since at least 2007 -- by quite a bit. In the four years we've been compiling this list, the previous low for an NBC show was the 3.96 million for "America's Toughest Jobs" in 2008. « Less

Viewers: 3.84 millionRank: 87thFun fact: The movie-of-the-week franchise has only been going for tw... Show More »

Viewers: 3.84 millionRank: 87thFun fact: The movie-of-the-week franchise has only been going for two weeks (since college football's regular season ended), and viewers haven't really noticed so far. (The movies ABC has shown are "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" and "Madagascar.") « Less

9/20

'Outlaw' - Saturday (NBC):

Viewers: 4.1 millionRank: 85th (tie)Fun fact: NBC banished the show to Saturdays after it struggled on Frida... Show More »

Viewers: 4.1 millionRank: 85th (tie)Fun fact: NBC banished the show to Saturdays after it struggled on Fridays (5.8 million viewers). Although it was a burnoff, it was part of NBC's regular schedule and thus qualifies for this list. « Less

10/20

'Running Wilde' (FOX):

Viewers: 4.1 millionRank: 85th (tie)Fun fact: "Running Wilde's" audience was on par with that of "Arrested ... Show More »

Viewers: 4.1 millionRank: 85th (tie)Fun fact: "Running Wilde's" audience was on par with that of "Arrested Development's" final season -- which also ran only 13 episodes. « Less

11/20

'Minute to Win It' - Friday (NBC):

Viewers: 4.31 millionRank: 84thFun fact: The game show joined the Friday schedule in early December,... Show More »

Viewers: 4.31 millionRank: 84thFun fact: The game show joined the Friday schedule in early December, so the two-episode sample size is pretty small. The show has done much better on Tuesdays (7.3 million viewers in its first two airings in December). « Less

12/20

'Cops' (FOX):

Viewers: 4.45 millionRank: 83rdFun fact: "Cops" makes its third appearance on our list in four years, but because it airs... Show More »

Viewers: 4.45 millionRank: 83rdFun fact: "Cops" makes its third appearance on our list in four years, but because it airs on Saturdays, its relatively paltry ratings are enough to remain competitive on the night. « Less

13/20

'Lone Star' (FOX):

Viewers: 4.52 millionRank: 82ndFun fact: Like last year's first cancellation, "The Beautiful Life," it lasted t... Show More »

Viewers: 4.52 millionRank: 82ndFun fact: Like last year's first cancellation, "The Beautiful Life," it lasted two episodes before being pulled. Unlike that show, it earned lots of critical praise before the public ignored it. « Less

14/20

'Supernanny' (ABC):

Viewers: 4.58 millionRank: 81stFun fact: This is the third year in a row "Supernanny" has made our list, but its ut... Show More »

Viewers: 4.58 millionRank: 81stFun fact: This is the third year in a row "Supernanny" has made our list, but its utility-player status -- filling in where the network has a hole in the schedule -- has helped it stay on the air at ABC. « Less

15/20

'The Apprentice' (NBC):

Viewers: 4.7 millionRank: 80thFun fact: How the once mighty have fallen. When it debuted in 2004, "The Apprenti... Show More »

Viewers: 4.7 millionRank: 80thFun fact: How the once mighty have fallen. When it debuted in 2004, "The Apprentice" was one of the top shows on TV with better than 20 million viewers per week. This fall's edition, the first non-celeb season since 2007, drew less than a fourth of that total. « Less

16/20

'My Generation' (ABC):

Viewers: 4.88 millionRank: 77thFun fact: The fake-documentary drama lasted all of two episodes on air; the remai... Show More »

Viewers: 4.88 millionRank: 77thFun fact: The fake-documentary drama lasted all of two episodes on air; the remainder of what was produced ran online. « Less

17/20

'The Whole Truth' (ABC):

Viewers: 5.4 millionRank: 75thFun fact: The 10 p.m. Wednesday timeslot has been poison for ABC for a while now... Show More »

Viewers: 5.4 millionRank: 75thFun fact: The 10 p.m. Wednesday timeslot has been poison for ABC for a while now. Among the denizens of the spot in recent seasons: "Eastwick," "Happy Town" and "Cashmere Mafia." « Less

18/20

'48 Hours Mystery' (CBS):

Viewers: 6.39 millionRank: 65thFun fact: Like three other shows on this list, the long-running newsmag airs o... Show More »

Viewers: 6.39 millionRank: 65thFun fact: Like three other shows on this list, the long-running newsmag airs on Saturday, the least-watched night of the week. « Less

19/20

'Medium' (CBS):

Viewers: 7.67 millionRank: 49thFun fact: While it's the least-watched scripted show on CBS -- and is ending in Jan... Show More »

Viewers: 7.67 millionRank: 49thFun fact: While it's the least-watched scripted show on CBS -- and is ending in January 2011 -- it's pretty much right in the middle of the rankings for the season. « Less

20/20

'Rules of Engagement'/'How I Met Your Mother' (CBS):

Viewers: 9.04 million ("Rules"), 9.73 million ("HIMYM")Rank: 37th and 33... Show More »

Viewers: 9.04 million ("Rules"), 9.73 million ("HIMYM")Rank: 37th and 33rdFun fact: Neither of these shows is anywhere near the bottom of the overall rankings. They're on this list solely because CBS is otherwise so healthy. « Less